Chapter Five
Epona
There was a great surprise waiting for the Kokiri when Link, Mya, Zane and Zelph arrived back at the village with the ex Skull Kid and Pip.
"Mya, we've been so worried!" Nanna exclaimed, fussing over her, then she gasped at the sight of the ex skull kid, "You...how?"
Skit looked on in shock now,
"I believe you know this one" Link said presenting him with the ex Skull Kid,
"Chestnut!" Skit exclaimed, examining him closely, "How did this happen?"
The leader looked up at Link after also examinig the ex Skull Kid ,
"Skull Kids stay Skull Kids, how did you do it?"
"I didn't, the Gods did, they took pity on him after he helped us find our way to the Shrine and I expressed my gratitude with a hug so they saw that some good in him remained and they returned him to this state" Link explained,
Skit now rounded on Pip,
"Why did you leave the village without telling anyone? You're so irresponsible, you could have been killed or worse!"
"What's worse than death?" Zelph asked
"Becoming a Skull Kid, doomed to be lonley forever and never dying no matter how horrific your injuries, or being turned into a minion for the Shanklin!" Skit said, deadly serious,
"I wanted to help Link" Pip said, "You've every right to be mad at me; it was stupid not to tell anyone where I was going but I knew you wouldn't let me and then I'd have just gone anyway...not the point, I know but I did help Link" He continued, looking up at Link, "Right Link? Tell them"
"It's true, he did help, in fact we mightn't have got out of there at all or found Mya and Zane had he not disobeyed you" Link told them.
The Kokiri looked at Pip differently now and after a handshake between him and Skit all was forgiven and the party started.
Link lost Mya almost instantly to the Kokiri, she was mesmerised by them. Nanna looked right at home here too, as did Zane.
Zelph spent time with each Kokiri, letting them show her their houses and shops and child sized farmland so Link stole away for a quiet moment up in a tree house to reflect on everything. He turned to pick up an old sign that had fallen and blew the dust off it to see written on it was; Link' house. This house was highest up of the lot and was tween sized. Link was amazed and curious. He got up, opened the door and stepped inside. He lit a torch and panned it around. There was the little bed Link had been sleeping on when Navi woke him up the first time. There on the wall was his fishing chart and racing times and on a table next to the bed was a photo of Epona with Malon.
Link sat on the floor, opened up his bag, took out his wallet and a photo of his mother and his father. He hugged this to him and started crying,
"I miss you" He sobbed,
The sword glowed but no words came, he needed to cry.
It was Zelph, who realised Link had disappeared but Zane knew where to find him. He gave Link a few more moments before heading over to Link' tree house. He found Link upstairs by the window, looking out at an adult sized farm.
"I get it" Zane said,
"I needed some time but to be honest I never expected to find this place, this is the home of Shade Link isn't it?"
"Uh huh!" Zane said happily, "I know you might not think it but I know grief. This threat is a blessing in disguise, something to distract you and your little sister but when they sleep and it's just you and your thoughts it hits you all over again. You really won't move on until you've laid your parents to rest Link. It's OK to cry"
"I just don't want to cry in front of Mya or Nanna. Mya, the Hylians, Kokiri, Korki descendants and Zoras and Gorons need me to be strong and it breaks Nanna' heart to see me unhappy. I have cried because I need to. Right now the thing getting me through is this trick of the brain, it's telling me mum and dad are in another room, they're not dead and I can see them if I want. It's not true but it's helping" Link said openly before looking out at the farm again, "There's a adult sized farm out there"
"That's not the farm Epona came from, but she is here in New Zealand" Zane told him, Link looked at him, "All the Link's of the past have named their horse after the first, out of pure love for the story and because it's always been the wildest of the horses, never to be tamed by anyone other than the Hero of Time. They name all wild Mares Epona but only the real Epona will respond to the Hero of Time"
"Will I have a need of a horse?" Link asked
"If you want to get to Zora' Domain, yes; it's within enchanted land but you won't be able to just go to the Ranch and snag a wild Mare, there's a trick to taming her" Zane grinned
"The song?" Link asked
"Not just that, when we were at the Deku tree...he does talk but it is stupid o' clock in the morning to him, you activated two orbs, the space portal, which takes you straight back to the Palace and the time portal, that's the yellow one" Zane told him
"Hang on, you want me to go back in time, pick a young horse, sing to it then come back here and steal it?"
"No" Zane said, "The farmer will know who you are then and remember you later, play the tune and see which of the young horses are drawn to you, you'll know Epona' soul when you look into her eyes. Leave the farm, go forward a time and claim her for your own"
Link looked at Zane and grinned in shock,
"I need an instrument" He said
"Take Zelph' flute and when you get back I'll show you how to make a whistle, the one I use belonged to your dad...I was there the night he died but Shanklin' men put a block on my power there so I couldn't help him"
"It's alright Zane...Zane, who did the first Link wed?" Link asked but Zane just smiled, "Come to the Rach with me" He added
Zane nodded and they left the tree house.
Mya and Zelph caught up with Link and Zane by the path that led to the Deku Tree.
"Hey! Where're you two going?" Mya asked
"To get me a horse, I'll be back little sis, don't worry" Link told her
"Doesn't take four of us" Zelph said after a look from Link, "Let's go and watch this race between Pip and Skit, Mya!" She added, taking Mya' hand,
"Wait, Link, are we staying here?" Mya asked
"You and Nanna are, just until my task is complete" Link told her, then to Zelph he asked, "Zelph, may I borrow you're flute?"
Zelph nodded and gave him the flute before she and a delighted Mya left to watch a race around the village between Pip and Skit, which Skit won hands down, much to Pip' frustration.
Link smiled after Mya and went with Zane, back to the Deku Tree. Once there Link reached out and touched the yellow orb, this turned into an arched door and with a little trepidation Link and Zane stepped through it and out into the same space but at sunrise. The Deku Tree looked younger and slimmer Link thought as he and Zane past it.
Link got a shock when the tree winked at him but then he gave his signiture laugh and followed Zane into the empty Kokiri village, then through the fallen tree tunnel and across the bridge. Things here looked very different. There was a vast field just like the one he'd seen in Ocorina of Time.
"Welcome to Hyrule...well part of it anyway, what with the move, until all the portals have been activated you can see certain things and places but you can't get to them, each orb will take you back to the last place you visited, so when you activate the orb for the Zora Shrine it'll take you back to the Deku Tree and then the Gorons orb will take you to Zoras' Domain and the Snow Mountains will take you back to the Gorons. This Ranch up ahead is in touching distance to the Lost Wood, which is why we'll be able to get a horse from there" Zane told Link
Link was mesmorised,
"What era are we in?" He asked
"Hard to say but it's after the Ocorina sarga I know that. We're a little early for the Twighlight Princess and the Civil War isn't yet upon us, this is a good time to get a horse. Now you've met Skit you know why there were adults in it's neighbouring village; Ordon, they came back with their families to live. The Shade married a Hylian so that the next would grow up, Link of the Twilight Sarga was orphaned in the Civil War, 17 years later hell broke loose again and so began the Era of the Wolf"
Link nodded and the pair headed off for Lon, Lon Ranch.
Sure enough there was a pen of horses, some with names but Link didn't pay any attention to these.
"What was your name again kid?" The farmer asked, "I'm of milk right now so you know, in case you were looking"
"Link" Link told him
"Ah...is it that time again? I should have guessed, that tunic fits you well Link, you know who made it don't you?" The farmer said
"I'm afraid I don't" Link told him kindly
"Have you any wild Mare?" Zane asked
"I do, two in fact, if you follow me I'll take you to them, I can't have them in the pen they'd only bolt and maybe even injure a few of the other horses, even if they are small right now" The farmer replied
He led them around the pen and to the barn that once held cattle and there were two very angry horses. Link wasn't scared though, just confused. He took out Zelph' flute and played Epona' song. Both horses calmed instantly, one was slightly bigger than the other.
Link stroked the large one and then noticed the sad look on the smaller one' face,
"You are for the Wolf" He told the larger horse, "Treat him well" Then he cuddled the smaller horse, there was a bond there, something in the eyes that told Link this was his Epona, "Oh you're definitely my horse"
"I'm afraid you can't just take her" The farmer said
"How long till I can take her?" Link asked
"Come back in two years, we'll race for it" The farmer said
"Two years! Race for her!" Link said as they left the Ranch, "How on Earth are we going to achieve that?"
Zane took out his whistle and blew a tune into it by wiggling his fingers over grooves in the woodwork. Link felt dizzy, everything spun and before he knew it he and Zane were in the middle of a Warzone.
"Uh oh!" Zane exclaimed, "I went forward too far"
Link and Zane hid, ducked and dived back to the ranch where they found both Link' Epona and Wolf Link' Epona freaking out completely and the farmhand nowhere to be seen,
"We've got to get them both out of here, can you ride?" Link asked
"Can you?" Zane replied
"Yes, though how I know that I have no idea" Link said
He played Epona' song and he and Zane got up onto either horse but they had to be quick there after when a barrage of arrows on fire flew over the wall and soon everything including the grass in places was ablaze.
Link and Zane galloped with both Epona' over three fences as they had no choice but to go in a straight line, they couldn't turn at the speed they were going. They galloped over the ranch all, across Hyrule Field, fighting Sheika off as they did so until they were able to get into the forest some distance from Kokiri,
Things were quite different here.
Link and Zane past two light springs, annoyed a bird selling potions and jumped two more fences as they crossed the bridge onto the path to Ordon. They didn't let up on the horses until they were at the tree house of another Link. Wolf Link; only Wolf Link was still a baby right now, and was being cradled by the Mayer, who was most alarmed to see Link and Zane.
They pulled the horses up and dismounted,
The second they had Link' Epona nudged him with affection and Wolf Link' Epona walked over to the Mayer to sniff baby Wolf Link,
"Well I'll be" The Mayer said, "Never see a horse do that"
"She seems to like him" Zane said, "Keep her"
"Oh we couldn't do that" The Mayer said
"I'm Link, knight to the Princess Zelda, I have no need of two horses, I only ask for the safest route to the Deku Tree from this point, I am sure you must know someone, who is good with horses, she'll work hard I assure you, has your child a name?" Link asked
"This is not my child, his mother just passed and his father...well, you've seen it out there, he's not likely to return...would you mind awefully if I were to name him Link?"
"I would be honoured" Link smiled,
"One, who shares his name with the Hero of Time is bound to do great things" Zane said
The Mayer looked at him in shock and then told them the way to the Deku Tree, Link thanked him but before he left the Mayer had one last question for him,
"What about the horse?"
"She's called Epona" Link told him and then he wrote some notes on a piece of paper that quickly turned into parchment befitting of the era, "Play this to calm her, she can get a little wild at times" and with that he and Link left on the path the Mayer had shown them.
It was still late when Link and Zane arrived back with Epona in tow. Zelph was waiting for them, she was half asleep but she didn't care about that once she saw Epona.
"Oh my God! Epona' real too!" She gushed, kissing her nose and petting her,
Link smiled,
"You really waited up for me?" He asked
"Yes, she did" This was the Deku Tree, Link looked up in shock, then causing Zelph to blush to added, "We had a most interesting coversation"
"Great Deku Tree" Link breathed
"Link of our time. I sense that you discovered a path running parallel to an ancestor of yours, that of Wolf Link"
Zelph looked at Link in surprise
"I did, this was meant, wasn't it?"
"Only you can say Link, the sun is rising, I suggest the three of you get some rest, there is some unease up at Zoras' Domain, bare this in mind before venturing beyond Kokiri. You will find a map with a passable route, on the table in Shade' tree house, I had the fairies light the lamps too and the fire"
Link nodded and led Epona towards the child sized farmland, Zelph was close behind, Zane though, was a few strides behind them both. Zelph was still nervous around Link but as long as he had only eyes for his task it meant he wouldn't look anywhere other than her way and she wanted to spend as much time with him as possible,
"Blimey" Zelph said once Link had explained everything to her, "You only went out for a horse"
This made Link laugh.
Link and Zelph climbed up into Shade Link' tree house where Link immediately grabbed and unravelled the map left for him,
Zelph sat on the small bed,
"We have to go past what was Lon, Lon Ranch to get to it, we could go through it I suppose, if you wanted to see it" Link said, there was no response, "Zelph?"
He turned to see that Zelph was fast asleep.
Link took his sword and shield off, found a blanket, draped it over her and then sat with his back to a wall, watching over her until he too fell fast asleep.
When Zelph woke up the next morning she was surprised to see a breakfast laid out for her on the table, a fresh pot of tea and a note from Link telling her he'd meet her by the tunnel to the bridge out, on Epona.
She turned the note over in her hand to find another that read; PS I also took the liberty of getting you some fresh clothes, I hope they fit, if they don't please don't hold it against me.
Zelph smiled as she crossed to a tunk that had some blue gil trousers and a blue top draped over it, along with some blue boots.
Zelph quickly changed into her new outfit and climbed down from the tree house, where she was greeted by the Kokiri, all of whom told her Link was waiting for her and where he was waiting for her and to drop into the shop if she wanted some normal arrows, as they had some now.
She followed this advice and then found Link by the tunnel to the bridge out, grooming Epona.
Link turned and smiled at her,
"I have my own whistle now, that whistle Zane has was dad', I don't want to take it away from him"
"Awe...how do we get to Zoras' Domain?" Zelph asked
Link and Zelph rode on Epona past the Deku Tree, through the forest, past Ordon and the two lakes, out onto part of Hyrule Field,
"If we go through the ruins of the Ranch and we break through the mirror, go a little way until we find a lake, not Hylia, this will be smaller than that, there's another mirror somewhere around it and it'll lead us to the entrance to Zora' Domain" Link was telling her as they approached the ruins,
"Wait, why can I see Hyrule Castle?" Zelph asked
"That's the thing, we can see it all but we can't get to it this way, it's the same in all eras accept the era of the Ocorina, because these places were moved. There are two enchanted places here in New Zealand and so because we have a map with a direct route to Zora' Domain from the Lost Woods and Kokori we can reach it from this point"
"So we're seeing the places we can't reach as they were once" Zelph summerised
"Exactly" Link told her.
Link and Zelph followed the path into what was once Lon, Lon Ranch and as Link suspected, once they past under the arched sign the Ranch became a burnt out, overgrown ruin. Epona was a little spooked at first but Link was a good handler and quickly took control,
"Guess this horse wrangling thing is inherited, I never rode before but I knew I would be able to ride Epona" Link told her, "I always loved Epona so this is all kids of awesome for me"
"It's exactly as it looks in Ocorina of Time out there but BOTW here" Zelph gushed,
"I was here when they burned it" Link told her, "That was a scary moment, we saved Wolf Link' Epona while we were at it and brought it to Ordon where Wolf Link was still a tot"
"So that's what the Deku Tree meant" Zelph replied
"Uh huh!" Link smiled
"Oh you are so a Korki but you have our Hylian ears, they're cool" She replied
"Zoras Domian, I wonder what we'll see there" Link grinned